Kristina is excited by the opportunity to help an old acquaintance run for Lieutenant Governor in Sacramento, but doesn't feel hip enough among the young generation of campaign workers. Meanwhile, Jasmine and Crosby agree to go on an official date.

Tim Goodman

Linda Stasi

While everyone is terrific, Tierney brought it to another level. Graham's Sarah is more frenetic than the low-key Tierney's version, but kudos to Graham for stepping in and making Sarah her own. Solid stuff all around.

Ken Tucker

Parenthood isn't better than "Modern Family," but it's different--it's its own creation, thanks to the deft touch and careful characterizations developed by executive producer Jason Katims and his writers.

Brian Lowry

Alessandra Stanley

The Bravermans are more interesting than the sum of their plights. The actors sparkle, even in muted form, but the Berkeley they inhabit feels a lot like upscale Brentwood, minus the Lexus sports cars and nanny cams.

Chuck Barney

What it lacks thus far are the laugh-out-loud oments that made the movie such a joy....That's not to say Parenthood isn't worth a look. Graham, the adorable "Gilmore Girls" alum, rocks the heck out of every scene she's in.

Maureen Ryan

Even when the show gets a bit melodramatic or overwrought, however, Parenthood's good intentions radiate throughout its many story lines. But do good intentions make for reliably compelling family drama? That depends on your tolerance for its frequent tonal shifts and occasional manic intervals.

Rob Owen

Aaron Barnhart

This one starts out at a frenetic clip, and even A-list talent is helpless in the face of the formulaic banter that such occasions demand. Only when the show slows down--midway through, does Parenthood suggest that it may have something worth watching.

David Hinckley

Parenthood is liberally spiced with humor, and like all Ron Howard productions, it also has regular moments designed to make our hearts feel all toasty. But other parts aren't funny at all for the large Braverman family around which the show revolves.

Tom Gliatto

Adam Keleman

With such a talented writer on board, Parenthood deserves a few more episodes to iron out some of its more trite, movie-of-the-week storylines, allowing its multifaceted characters, and all their routine tribulations, to organically manifest as life consequently unravels.

Jonathan Storm

Hank Stuever

Packed with appealing actors (Peter Krause in the Martin role; Craig T. Nelson in Robards's paterfamilias role), this new Parenthood is boring, disorganized and weirdly missing the tender texture of its original source.

Glenn Garvin

Daynah Burnett

Even though Parenthood‘s parents are all making completely misguided choices, the series doesn’t consider these as a means to education, through which the adults might reach that kind of self-awareness. That lack of consideration is the series’ most unfortunate waste of a promising storyline, one that could have imbued this second version with something refreshing or even revelatory.